Pork Tenderloin Roulade...

With a few extra minutes this morning before I went out to enjoy the day, I decided to assemble the protein that was going to go with tonight's dinner. Certainly you can prepare this Pork Tenderloin Roulade right before you'd like to make it, but we were going to be home a little later than I had originally intended and I didn't want to feel rushed later this evening.

To allow all the fillings we were going to stuff into the tenderloin to fit, it needed to be reshaped into a big flat canvas. The easiest way to do this is to simply slice the pork in half, lengthwise, but stop short of cutting it in half. Once that's done, open the tenderloin up like a book, then use a mallet (or frankly, a heavy skillet would do the job too) to flatten the meat to an even 1/2" thickness. You could also do another method, called double butterflying, where you partially slice into the top and bottom thirds (opposite sides), then open the meat to flatten, but the first works just as well.

Crumbled goat cheese, toasted walnuts, fresh thyme and a couple chopped shallots, softened first in a splash of olive oil, are the ingredients sprinkled over the flattened piece of pork. If you like, use raw shallots for a more potent bite, but Jeff requested them cooked first - just be sure to cool them completely if using them this way. After rolling and tightly securing the pork with butchers twine (spaced around 1" apart or so), it was wrapped tightly and set in the refrigerator to chill while we were gone.

If you would be doing the same, be sure to take the meat out of the fridge for a good twenty minutes or so to take the chill off before cooking. The original recipe calls for pulling the pork when it registers around 155 degrees - which is ok, if that makes you feel more comfortable. However, for our preference, we're perfectly fine taking it out when it reaches 145 degrees and still retains a juicy and robust pink hue. Whichever temperature you do, my one request is that you please let the meat rest for at least 8 to 10 minutes before taking your blade to it - I'm sure you have heard or read this a million times now, but letting those natural juices redistribute into the meat makes all the difference.

The straightforward filling is definitely adaptable to your tastes - use a different cheese, switch up the fresh herbs or think about a different toasted nut for a revamped meal. We were thoroughly pleased though with this combination though - clean and simple, yet enough complexity to keep our taste buds interested after the first bite.

Recipes
Pork Tenderloin Roulade